The Coma
by monkeywahl
Summary: What if it was all just a dream of what could have been? [AU]


"W-where am I..?" Makoto questioned, as his eyes adjusted to the blinding light coming from a lamp a few feet away from him. The next thing he heard was a steady _beep...beep...beep... _and he looked down. Tubes were attached to him, and a needle was in his inner elbow. Makoto flexed his achy fingers, while examining the gray sheets he was under.

"M-Makoto!" Haruka exclaimed, rushing to Makoto's bedside. Makoto's head popped up at the sound of his best friend's voice, and he furrowed his eyebrows. "H-Haru? Where are we?" the green-haired boy asked, while scanning his eyes across the room.

_Heart-monitor.._

_Bag of fluid.._

_Flowers.._

"Am I in the hospital, Haru-chan?" Haruka narrowed his eyes sadly, and laid his hands on the bed. "We're in the hospital, Mako." Haruka moved his dark bangs out of his eyes, and held a straight face. "Do you remember what happened?"

Makoto closed his eyes, and bit his lip, digging through his memories. "We just started senior year.. Didn't we?" Haru shook his head. "What do you mean no, Haru-chan? W-we were in a relay with Rin.. and Rei.. and Nagisa.. We competed against Sousuke, Rin.. Nitori, and Mikoshiba at the swimming festival."

"Rei took swimming lessons from Rin.. right? He wanted to learn other styles other than the butterfly.. right?" Haru once again shook his head, and had a pained look across his features.

The boy with dark hair clenched his fists. "Th-those things never happened, Mako." Makoto darted his eyes back and forth, confused. "Where's Rei and Nagisa, Haru-chan?"

...

"They're dead, Mako."

...

_Wait... What?_

"D-dead?... What are you talking about?" The steady _beep...beep...beep... _then quickened, following Makoto's heartbeat. Haruka sat back in the guest chair, and looked as if he was about to cry. "Do you remember that day Rei went out for extra training, and the storm hit?" Makoto raised his eyebrows, and twitched his toes. "Not really.."

"Rei was having trouble so you swam out to go help him..but you got scared, and I had to swim out to save you. Nagisa went after Rei, but we got separated. I tried CPR, but you wouldn't wake up.."

"Nagisa and Rei's bodies were found, washed up on shore farther down. They drowned, Mako."

Haruka clenched his teeth, reliving the horrific memory.

Makoto's mouth hung down slightly, eyes wide.

"Th-there's no way.. That's.."

"You've been in a coma since that day."

"H-how long.. How long ago.. was it.."

"It's been almost three years."

Mako felt his heart plummet into his stomach. _Everything had just been a dream?_

"What's..happened in the past three years, Haru?"

Haruka sighed, and couldn't help but feel the familiar pang of despair; the same feeling he had for a long time after the incident.

"I graduated...and I stopped swimming." He paused. "The Swim Club ended, and Gou went back to continuously looking after Rin and focusing on her schoolwork... After the accident, Rin and I grew close. He graduated, and is working towards his professional swimming career.. There was a funeral held for Nagisa and Rei.. It was really nice.."

Mako frowned. "You..stopped swimming?"

"How could I continue doing something I love, without the ones I loved around me?" Mako looked down, sorrowful. "You're the only one I have left, Makoto. I visited you every day, waiting for you to wake up."

"Oh, Haru.. Why has this.. Why has everything played out like this?" By this time, Makoto's heartbeat slowed down. He brought his hands up to his face, shielding his features from his best friend.

"I should probably call a nurse in, and say you woke up." Makoto slid his hands down his face, revealing a steady flow of tears. He nodded his head, and gazed out the window to observe the clear night sky.

As Haruka was walking out of the room, he turned back in the doorway.

"I'm glad to have you back, Mako."

"Y-yeah... Me too, Haru."

* * *

**A/N:** Hey guys! I received inspiration for this fic from my friend LeviHeichallie on Twitter.

This ranges from Free! season one, to season two, episode three.

Review, please!

(I do not own Free! or the characters.)


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